Kaduna Gov supports orphans, patients on his birthday

Kaduna State Governor, Uba Sani, on Thursday marked his 55th birthday with the donation of food items and cash to orphans and indigent patients in Kaduna and Zaria.

The outreach, organised by the Uba Sani Foundation, targeted orphanage homes and public hospitals, with the governor choosing humanitarian service over a lavish celebration to commemorate the milestone.

Sani, who turned 55 on December 31, said the gesture was aimed at identifying with vulnerable members of society and spreading hope as the year drew to a close.

According to the organisers, the foundation visited seven orphanage homes and eight major public health facilities in Kaduna metropolis and Zaria as part of the birthday activities.

Speaking during the outreach, the Executive Director of the foundation, Mallam Ibrahim Dan-Halilu, said food items worth millions of naira were distributed to children in orphanage homes.

He said the items included 50kg bags of rice, cartons of spaghetti, cooking oil, seasoning cubes, pomade, soap, sanitary pads and blankets to cushion the effects of the harmattan cold.

Dan-Halilu explained that the materials were carefully selected to meet the daily needs of the children and provide comfort during the festive period.

Benefitting orphanage homes included Umm Aytam Orphanage and Women Home, Unguwan Dosa; Al-Ihsan Orphanage, Nassarawa; Adonai Children and Widows Home, Kakuri; and Naphtali Orphanage, Gonin Gora.

Other beneficiaries were smaller orphanage homes in Kaduna South and Kaduna North local government areas.

The foundation also extended the birthday outreach to patients receiving treatment in public hospitals across the state.

Health facilities visited included Barau Dikko Teaching Hospital; Yusuf Dantsoho General Hospital, Tudun Wada; Gwamna Awan General Hospital, Makera-Kakuri; General Hospital, Kawo; and Hajiya Gambo Sawaba General Hospital, Kofar Gayan, Zaria.

During the hospital visits, cash donations were distributed to more than 200 patients to assist with the purchase of prescribed drugs and payment for laboratory investigations.

Explaining the rationale behind the initiative, Dan-Halilu said the foundation chose orphanages and hospitals because of the vulnerability of their residents.

“The purpose of the visits to the two special places was to use the occasion of the governor’s birthday to remember the less privileged in our midst and assist them so they can enter the New Year in high spirit,” he said.

He urged affluent individuals and organisations to support the needy, calling on them “to emulate the kind gesture of the governor, who has been assisting the less privileged long before he became governor.”

Beneficiaries of the donations expressed appreciation and offered prayers for Sani’s long life, good health and continued commitment to humanitarian service.

The Uba Sani Foundation, established in 2018, focuses on health, education and empowerment.

It has awarded scholarships to over 2,000 indigent students, trained more than 5,000 women and youths, and provided medical support to over 10,000 people.